Virtually any container that you can cut or punch drainage holes into can be used for vegetable gardening. Styrofoam ice chests, livestock watering troughs or recycled 5-gallon paint buckets can work well.
(Dean Fosdick via AP)

Container gardens are a great way to grow vegetables when you're short on yard space or live in apartment or condo with only a sunny patio or balcony. Container vegetable gardening also is less physically demanding than an in-ground garden, making it easier for anyone who finds cultivating and weeding beds too physically demanding or time consuming.

Many cool-season vegetables can be planted now and grown successfully in containers. Just make sure they get proper care.

Select a sunny location outdoors. All vegetables grow best in full sun. The location should receive direct sun at least six hours a day. Leafy vegetables, such as lettuce, parsley, mustard greens and collards, will produce fairly well with as little as four hours of sun. But they will produce better and faster in full sun.

Container considerationsThe larger the container, the more choices you have of vegetables to grow. Production is generally higher with larger containers, and you don't have to water them as often. And remember, it's far easier to take care of a few large containers than many smaller ones.

Plastic or clay pots, tubs, half whiskey barrels or other containers may be purchased. But virtually any container that you can cut or punch drainage holes into may be used. Styrofoam ice chests, livestock watering troughs or recycled 5-gallon paint buckets, for instance, can work well. Punch at least four holes evenly spaced around the sides at the bottom of the container.

Fill the container with commercial potting mix or potting soil. The level of soil should be 1 or 2 inches below the rim of the container after planting. This is called head space and helps facilitate proper watering.

You may want to blend some finished compost into the potting mix before you fill the containers. I mix up to one-third sifted compost to two-thirds potting mix.

There are pros and cons.

The potting mix has been pasteurized to ensure there are no living disease organisms or weed seeds in the mix. But that treatment also removes beneficial organisms that make plants grow better.

Compost is packed with beneficial fungi and bacteria that encourage healthy roots and vigorous plants. The compost also provides essential plant nutrients.

On the downside, the compost may contain living disease organisms or weed seeds. Be careful not to add diseased vegetable plants or weeds with seeds to your compost pile. They will be introduced into your potting mix -- and that would not be good.

It's a good idea to use small bricks or pot feet to raise containers off wood porches or decks. This keeps the drainage water from collecting under the containers and possibly staining or damaging the wood.

If the pot fits, plant in itVegetable seeds or transplants can be planted in containers. Root crops, though, must be planted using seeds.

The following are some of the vegetables that can be planted now and the minimum-sized pot they will require. The number of plants that can be planted in each container is shown in parentheses. The number is based on the size of the vegetable plant at maturity.

One-gallon container:

Beets (2 to 3)

Carrots (3)

Celery (1)

Chinese cabbage (1)

Collards (1)

Garlic (2)

Kohlrabi (1)

Leeks (1)

Lettuce (2)

Mustard greens (2)

Bunching onion (2 to 3)

Parsley (1)

Radish (2 to 3)

Shallots (2 to 3)

Spinach (2)

Swiss chard (1)

Turnips (2).

You can plant more vegetables in a larger container. For instance, you can plant six turnips in a 3-gallon container or 10 turnips in one 5-gallon container

Three gallon container:

Broccoli (2)

Cabbage (1 or 2)

Kale (2)

Brussels sprouts (1)

Cauliflower (1).

In a 5-gallon container, you could plant three or four broccoli, two cabbage or two cauliflower transplants.

Avoid overcrowding the vegetables. Crowded vegetables are not as productive and may lead to crop failures and increased pest problems.

It's a good idea to choose smaller growing cultivars or those developed for container culture. You also can combine different types of vegetables in the same container.

Check the soil daily, and do not allow the vegetable plants to wilt before watering. Always water gently until water runs out of the container's drainage holes. To minimize foliar diseases, avoid wetting the foliage.

A general-purpose soluble fertilizer (the kind you dissolve in water) applied every two weeks as needed works well for container vegetables. Organic options include fish emulsion, liquid kelp or other fish or seaweed-based fertilizers.

General-purpose slow-release fertilizers also can be used during planting and reduce the need to repeatedly apply soluble fertilizer. Follow label directions for the product you use.

Plants show a need for fertilizer when they turn pale green, lack vigor and the older, bottom leaves are yellowing. Without adequate fertilizer, vegetables take longer to develop and will produce less to harvest.

Weeds will occasionally appear in container plantings and should be removed promptly if you see them. But this is far easier than weeding beds.

Check plants daily, and control insects and diseases when needed. Fortunately, insect and disease problems occur far less often in the winter than in the summer growing season. If problems do occur, contact your parish LSU AgCenter Extension office for help in diagnosis and control.

Finally, harvest your vegetables regularly, promptly and at the proper stage for maximum quality. (Email me for proper harvesting information.) After all, this is the reward for the effort.

If you have given up growing vegetables due to physical limitations, give container vegetable gardening a try. And if you live in an apartment or condo, container vegetable gardening will allow you to experience the rewards of growing your own fresh vegetables.

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